October 2022, St Stephen's sees 135 years of faithful service in the community.
Where were we 10 years ago?
Photograph by Himy Creative
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In October 2012, St Stephen's celebrated 125 yearsReverend Richard Lane reflected on St Stephen’s back in 1887.
‘Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea like a man’s hand.’ 125 years ago, on Sunday 2 October 1887, the Reverend Wallace Mort preached on this verse from 1 Kings 18:44. The occasion was the first service of the new mission church of St Stephen’s, Edgecliff Road. Sydney, 1887. What was life like 125 years ago? I browsed some newspapers and articles of the late 1880s to gain a sense of the times: 1887 was the jubilee year of Queen Victoria, and Australia was about to mark 100 years of European settlement. Centennial Park had not yet been set aside and the South Australians were stridently opposing the proposal to join the ‘convict states’ in Federation. |
There was an Aquarium at Bondi, and the Bondi sewer tower (now on the golf links) would not be erected until 1889.
The Railways were a big part of the land’s infrastructure. Over the last 30 years more than 2070 miles of track had been laid for steam train travel. The Hawkesbury Bridge was the final project to complete the Sydney-Newcastle-Brisbane rail link.
For many, the 1880s were a time of crisis. The end of 1886 had been marked by widespread unemployment which had become so serious that starvation threatened many families. The Government established the ‘Carrington Relief Report’ and in the space of the few months 50,000 free meals were distributed to the needy.
I also read this summary by the journalist and author, Marcus Clarke, about the character of Australians: ‘They are not a nation of snobs like the English or of extravagant boasters like the Americans or of reckless profligates like the French; they are simply a nation of drunkards’.
No doubt Clarke would have been keen to promote the new brew which was being sold in the USA and in 1887 had just had its first birthday - a little-known drink called Coca-cola.
It was in the midst of such times that Rev. Mort chose the text ‘Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea like a man’s hand’. About 60 people attended the opening service in the new building on Edgecliff Road, whose foundation stone had been laid by Lady Carrington about three months earlier.
The Parish magazine of October 1887 reported that Rev. Mort read his text and then drew out ‘the analogy between the smallness of the cloud and the magnitude and rapid growth of the blessings; trusting that it might apply to the future history of the mission; also tracing in the ‘man’s hand’ the use made by God of human means to further his purposes’.
October 2012 marks 125 years since Rev. Mort preached his word. St Stephen’s remained in Edgecliff Road for 40 years before moving to its present location in Bellevue Hill. The words of Rev. Wallace Mort have had a prophetic tone as the ensuing 125 years have unfolded. Indeed, our present Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, came from this very church, St Stephen’s - a clear sign of the use made by God of this church to further his purposes.
How fitting it is for us to gather and give thanks to God for his hand of blessing on our church over the last 125 years.
The Railways were a big part of the land’s infrastructure. Over the last 30 years more than 2070 miles of track had been laid for steam train travel. The Hawkesbury Bridge was the final project to complete the Sydney-Newcastle-Brisbane rail link.
For many, the 1880s were a time of crisis. The end of 1886 had been marked by widespread unemployment which had become so serious that starvation threatened many families. The Government established the ‘Carrington Relief Report’ and in the space of the few months 50,000 free meals were distributed to the needy.
I also read this summary by the journalist and author, Marcus Clarke, about the character of Australians: ‘They are not a nation of snobs like the English or of extravagant boasters like the Americans or of reckless profligates like the French; they are simply a nation of drunkards’.
No doubt Clarke would have been keen to promote the new brew which was being sold in the USA and in 1887 had just had its first birthday - a little-known drink called Coca-cola.
It was in the midst of such times that Rev. Mort chose the text ‘Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea like a man’s hand’. About 60 people attended the opening service in the new building on Edgecliff Road, whose foundation stone had been laid by Lady Carrington about three months earlier.
The Parish magazine of October 1887 reported that Rev. Mort read his text and then drew out ‘the analogy between the smallness of the cloud and the magnitude and rapid growth of the blessings; trusting that it might apply to the future history of the mission; also tracing in the ‘man’s hand’ the use made by God of human means to further his purposes’.
October 2012 marks 125 years since Rev. Mort preached his word. St Stephen’s remained in Edgecliff Road for 40 years before moving to its present location in Bellevue Hill. The words of Rev. Wallace Mort have had a prophetic tone as the ensuing 125 years have unfolded. Indeed, our present Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, came from this very church, St Stephen’s - a clear sign of the use made by God of this church to further his purposes.
How fitting it is for us to gather and give thanks to God for his hand of blessing on our church over the last 125 years.
On 13-14 October 2012, we held a celebration weekend to give thanks and praise to God for his hand over St Stephen’s through the past 125 years.
On Saturday night there was a dinner-dance, on Sunday afternoon there was a concert recital, and our celebration concluded with a thanksgiving service. Click below to download the sermon.
On Saturday night there was a dinner-dance, on Sunday afternoon there was a concert recital, and our celebration concluded with a thanksgiving service. Click below to download the sermon.
| 125th Anniversary Thanksgiving Sermon - 21 Oct 2012 |
"We do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake"
2 Corinthians 4:5
St Stephen's Anglican Church
1 Bellevue Park Road, Bellevue Hill NSW 2023, Australia
ststephensbhill@gmail.com - 02 9389 9615
2 Corinthians 4:5
St Stephen's Anglican Church
1 Bellevue Park Road, Bellevue Hill NSW 2023, Australia
ststephensbhill@gmail.com - 02 9389 9615
